Lake Dardanelle State Park is more than a place to go fishing and float boats. The Visitor’s Center offers patrons a chance to learn facts about local fish and critters and see them live.

Lacey Gurien, State Park aquarium specialist, gives informational tours of the native fish, turtles, lizards and snakes kept there and show visitors what happens at feeding time.

“Everything in our aquarium is native to Lake Dardanelle,” Gurien said. She receives a lot of help from others who care.

“I have fishermen and grad students from Tech who bring me fish,” she said. “I bring in fish to add to the collection as well.

“Local fishermen and Fisheries and Wildlife grad students are a big help with aiding in building our collection.”

Lake Dardanelle has a diverse population of wildlife. People are invited to see some examples kept in the aquarium of the kind of animals that live around the lake and for free.

“It’s great,” Gurien said. “Folks are able to see the wide variety of fish we have here at the lake.”

It takes a great deal of effort, patience and a lot of work into keeping and building the aquarium’s collection.

“I have a lot of daily maintenance to perform,” Gurien said. “I put ‘bugs’ in peoples ears to let them know I’m looking for specific snakes, lizards and other animals to have on site for people to view. I’m always on the hunt for new fish species to add to the aquarium.

Darter fish are one example of fish folks typically see at the aquarium.

“They are native to the lake,” she said. “But, some people don’t know that. They look like a tropical fish and are so small many people wouldn’t have a chance to view them in the lake.”

Gurien has an underground laboratory where she keeps turtles, fish under quarantine and snakes that are rotated in and out of the Visitor Center aquarium. The turtles sometimes need a break and a larger area to swim around and relax in. Gurien keeps new fish brought in by donors in a special tank to make sure they are fit to go in the aquarium.

In a different section of her lab, Gurien keeps several breeds of snakes that have taken a break from the activities on the center’s main floor.

“We have a milk snake, a rough green snake, an 8-year-old great plains rat snake and a hog nose snake,” she said.

“But, we do not keep any venomous snakes here at the Visitor’s Center, aquarium or lab area.

Some people may think the visitor’s center is just that, Gurien said. But, it’s so much more.